DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application is being examined under the pre-AIA first to invent provisions.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-2, 4, 9-10, and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by U.S. Patent Publication No. 2018/0376082 ("Liu").
Regarding claim 1, Liu discloses a display light measuring apparatus comprising:
an optical sensor (602, Fig. 6A);
an integration circuit that includes an integration capacitor (608, Fig. 6A, paragraph [0077]) and accumulates electric charge output from the optical sensor (paragraph [0077]);
a light quantity limiter (604, Fig. 6A, and/or 404, Fig. 4) that is capable of limiting a quantity of light to the optical sensor (paragraphs [0058]-[0059], [0077], [0080]); and
a hardware processor (implied, see paragraphs [0077], [0080], [0109]) that activates the light quantity limiter (604, Fig. 6A, and/or 404, Fig. 4) to limit the quantity of light during non-measurement operation (paragraphs [0078]-[0080], 604, Fig. 6A and/or mechanical shutter enabled) and cancels the limitation of the quantity of light by the light quantity limiter during measurement operation (paragraphs [0077], during exposure period, 604 is disabled).
Regarding claim 2, Liu discloses the display light measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the hardware processor detects a trigger signal (signal 611, Fig. 6A) that triggers the light quantity limiter (604, Fig. 6A, and/or 404, Fig. 4) to operate so as to limit the quantity of light (paragraph [0080]), receives an instruction to perform the measurement operation (switching signals that begin exposure period, paragraph [0077]), activates the light quantity limiter to limit the quantity of light based on the detection of the trigger signal (paragraph [0080]), and cancels the limitation of the quantity of light by the light quantity limiter based on the received instruction to perform the measurement operation (implied, paragraph [0077]).
Regarding claim 4, Liu discloses the display light measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the hardware processor receives an instruction to perform the measurement operation (implied, see exposure period, paragraph [0077]), cancels the limitation of the quantity of light by the light quantity limiter (signal 611, paragraph [0077]) based on the received instruction to perform the measurement operation (implied, paragraph [0077]), and activates the light quantity limiter to limit the quantity of light at an end of the measurement operation (paragraph [0078]).
Regarding claim 9, Liu discloses a display light measuring method performed by a display light measuring apparatus that includes an optical sensor (602, Fig. 6A), an integration circuit that includes an integration capacitor (608, Fig. 6A) and accumulates electric charge output from the optical sensor (602, Fig. 6A, paragraph [0077]), and light quantity limiter (604, Fig. 6A, and/or 404, Fig. 4) that is capable of limiting a quantity of light to the optical sensor (paragraphs [0058]-[0059], [0077], [0080]), the method comprising:
activating the light quantity limiter (604, Fig. 6A, and/or 404, Fig. 4) to limit the quantity of light during non-measurement operation (paragraphs [0078]-[0080], 604, Fig. 6A and/or mechanical shutter enabled, for example, during reset period); and
canceling the limitation of the quantity of light by the light quantity limiter during measurement operation (paragraphs [0077], 604 is disabled during exposure period).
Regarding claim 10, Liu discloses the display light measuring method performed by the display light measuring apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising:
detecting a trigger signal (signal 611, Fig. 6A) that triggers the light quantity limiter (604, Fig. 6A, and/or 404, Fig. 4) to operate so as to limit the quantity of light (paragraph [0080]); receiving an instruction to perform the measurement operation (switching signals that begin exposure period, paragraph [0077]); activating the light quantity limiter to limit the quantity of light based on the detection of the trigger signal (paragraph [0080]); and canceling the limitation of the quantity of light by the light quantity limiter based on the instruction (implied, paragraph [0077]).
Regarding claim 12, Liu discloses the display light measuring method performed by the display light measuring apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising:
receiving an instruction to perform the measurement operation (implied, see exposure period, paragraph [0077]); canceling the limitation of the quantity of light by the light quantity limiter (signal 611, paragraph [0077]) based on the instruction (implied, paragraph [0077]); and activating the light quantity limiter to limit the quantity of light at an end of the measurement operation (paragraph [0078]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4, 5-8, 11, and 13-16 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: The invention as claimed, specifically in combination with: the trigger signal being an operation by a user on the display light measuring apparatus to activate the display light measuring apparatus; or a trigger signal that triggers the display light measuring apparatus to stop; or the hardware processor performs zero calibration, receives an instruction to perform the measurement operation, and activates the light quantity limiter to limit the quantity of light at an end of the measurement operation performed based on the received instruction to perform the measurement operation, and at an end of the zero calibration, are not taught or made obvious by the prior art of record.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MONICA T. TABA whose telephone number is (571)272-1583. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 9 am - 6 pm.
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/MONICA T TABA/Examiner, Art Unit 2878
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